WE have had enough of disputed elections, which are a prescription for violence and instability, says Vernon Mwaanga.
The veteran politician said there was need for more transparency in the election process, by having it observed at each and every point.
“This will reassure the country and election participants of a fair process. As Zambians, we must have a shared vision for a free, fair and just society for all our people,” he said.
Mwaanga said part of the reason for the struggle waged against colonialism and apartheid, was to give the people of Africa, the right to choose their own representatives and leaders, who would have their best interests at heart.
He said this includes election of political leaders at all levels from branch to the national level.
“We recognised that charity begins at home and hence the importance of intra-party democracy. More importantly, we wanted to institutionalise the culture of holding free, fair, transparent and democratic elections which meet international standards as prescribed by SADC, the African Union and the United Nations,” Mwaanga said.
He said Africa went through the dark era of military coups and big men rule, which grossly undermined democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
“Fortunately, African leaders realised the folly of such systems and decided to embrace democratic governance and made it mandatory for African countries to hold free and fair elections. Both the African Union and SADC came up with very clear and identical election guidelines and protocols in 2004 for member states, which include the duties and responsibilities of governments, political parties, electoral commissions, the media, election observers etc,” he said.
Mwaanga said the SADC principles and guidelines governing the holding of free, fair and democratic elections were adopted by heads of state in Mauritius in August 2004.
He said the principles aimed at enhancing the transparency and credibility of elections and democratic governance in the SADC region as well as ensuring acceptance of election results by all contesting political parties and individuals who contest elections from local councillors right up to the presidency.
Mwaanga said it was the fervent hope of African leaders that the principles and guidelines would promote common political values and systems which would help consolidate, defend and maintain democracy, peace, security and stability in the region and in Africa as a whole.
He said a great majority of African countries had modern constitutions which in theory, guaranteed equal opportunities and full participation of all citizens in the political process of their respective countries.
Mwaanga said some of the fundamental issues underlined in the protocols include; full participation of citizens (all citizens) in the political process of the country, freedom of association, political tolerance, equal opportunity for all political parties taking part in elections to access the state media, equal opportunity to exercise the right to vote and be voted for and independence of the judiciary and impartiality of electoral commissions, which must maintain strict impartiality in the conduct of their duties and which should not at any time express any bias or preference in relation to ruling authorities, political parties or candidates taking part in elections.
He said the role of election observers was also spelt out in great detail. Mwaanga said the role of election observers had recently come under severe scrutiny, following their flowed election reports in Kenya, Malawi and elsewhere.
“Sadly many countries observe these protocols to which they are a party in breach rather than in compliance. One just has to look at what has been happening in Zambia, which is a signatory to both AU and SADC protocols for the holding of free, fair, transparent and democratic elections,” he said.
Mwaanga said during the by-election in Chilubi Constituency, which attracted a lot of national, regional and international attention, opposition leaders were being forcibly escorted out of the constituency by the police, simply because President Edgar Lungu was going to be campaigning there.
He said there was no such law which says that when the President of Zambia was campaigning in a particular constituency, district or province, no other political leaders should campaign there.
“During the time of MMD in government 1991 to 2011, our presidents Frederick Chiluba, Levy Mwanawasa and Rupiah Banda, used to campaign in the same constituencies with opposition leaders notably Anderson Mazoka, Michael Sata and Hakainde Hichilema,” he said.
However, Mwaanga noted that in the recent past, junior officials of government and the ruling party have been preventing opposition leaders from being interviewed on private or community radio stations across the country.
“At times claiming that the stations had no ‘police permits’ to air live interviews which had been paid for in advance. They even threaten to close radio stations, which is something beyond their powers. What kind of nonsense is this and what law are they using? Police permits were struck down by the Supreme Court of Zambia in 1996, as being inconsistent with the rights and freedoms of citizens to freely assemble, as provided for by the Constitution of Zambia and the Bill of Rights,” he said. “The police permit for public meetings, demonstrations etc, were replaced by merely notifying the police. What is more disturbing, is that the lowly placed government officers and party cadres who infringe the laws are not being punished. Party cadres have become a law unto themselves and are even assaulting police officers. What kind of madness is this? No one is above the law. For all practical purposes, the electoral process for August 2021 has already began with issuance of National Registration Cards, which must be done fairly in all parts of Zambia. This will be followed by voter registration, verification of registers by voters, to ensure that their correct particulars are reflected in the registers. The first time young voters must register as voters and turn up to vote.”
Mwaanga said young people must not allow politicians to continue telling them that “you are the future leaders”.
“Your future is now. Stand up and be counted. After candidates have been selected by political parties, the campaign field must be level and equal for all without exception. The vote count, vote verification, must be fully transparent and observed by representatives of political parties and civil society, to prevent possible vote tampering. We have had enough of disputed elections, which are a prescription for violence and instability,” said Mwaanga.